Beausite Métal inc. fined $40,000 for failing to comply with an environmental protection compliance order Français

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Environment and Climate Change Canada

Dec 18, 2025, 12:30 ET

SHERBROOKE, QC, Dec. 18, 2025 /CNW/ - Environment and Climate Change Canada enforcement officers strive to ensure that businesses and the public comply with the acts and regulations designed to protect Canada's natural environment.

On December 17, 2025, in the Court of Québec, Beausite Métal inc. pleaded guilty to one count of violating the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999. The company was fined $40,000. The fine will be directed to the Government of Canada's Environmental Damages Fund.

The offence relates to a failure to comply with an environmental protection compliance order, which required the company to implement corrective measures to comply with the Act and its PCB Regulations. In addition to the fine, the Court ordered Beausite Métal inc. to implement a series of measures aimed at restoring compliance.

On May 4, 2022, Environment and Climate Change Canada enforcement officers inspected the site operated by Beausite Métal inc., located in Val-des-Sources, Quebec, to verify compliance with the PCB Regulations. They found unused equipment, including electrical transformers, pole-top electrical transformers, capacitors, and ballasts containing PCBs in concentrations exceeding the 50 mg/kg limit allowed by the Regulations. On July 25, 2022, enforcement officers issued an environmental protection compliance order that ordered, among other things, the disposal and destruction of PCB-contaminated equipment within a specified deadline.

However, Beausite Métal inc. challenged the order issued by the enforcement officers before the Environmental Protection Tribunal of Canada. The Tribunal confirmed the order on October 11, 2023.

Enforcement officers visited the site between May 22 and May 24, 2024, and found that some of the measures required in the order had not been followed. The equipment to be disposed of and destroyed was still on site. Failure to comply with an environmental protection compliance order is a violation of subsection 238(1) of the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999.

As a result of this conviction, the company's name will be added to the Environmental Offenders Registry. The Registry contains information on convictions of corporations registered for offences committed under certain federal environmental laws.

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Quick facts

Polychlorinated biphenyls, chlorobiphenyls, or PCBs are toxic industrial chemicals that have harmful effects on aquatic ecosystems and species that feed primarily on aquatic organisms. PCBs remain in the environment and in the tissue of humans and animals for a very long time.
The PCB Regulations were developed in 2008 to prevent the release of PCBs into the environment and accelerate the phasing out of these substances. The Regulations set deadlines for discontinuing the use of PCBs in various equipment and limit the length of time PCBs can be stored before being destroyed.
The Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999 governs various environmental issues, such as air and water pollution, waste management, and toxic substances. Environment and Climate Change Canada enforcement officers conduct inspections and investigations under the Act. They ensure that organizations and individuals comply with applicable environmental protection laws.
Environment and Climate Change Canada enforcement officers can issue an environmental protection compliance order under the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999 requiring that the necessary measures be taken in order to cease or refrain from committing the alleged contravention.
Created in 1995, the Environmental Damages Fund is a Government of Canada program administered by Environment and Climate Change Canada. The Fund directs monies received from fines, penalties, court orders, and voluntary payments to projects that will repair environmental damage or benefit the environment. The Fund aims to invest in areas where the environmental damage occurred.